Metamorphosis
by Out Live a Lie
Summary: It was as though she had lost one of the people she cared for most all over again. Only this time their body was still walking, though empty of that person who once was. [Red Beauty/Red Lace - Tri-Shot].
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Metamorphosis

**Summary: **It was as though she had lost one of the people she cared for most all over again. Only this time their body was still walking, though empty of that person who once was.

**Pairing: **Red Beauty/Red Lace (hinted Swan Queen too if you squint).

...

**Notes:**

**Originally a One–Shot this developed into a Tri–Shot.**

Chapter 1 & 3 are **T** rated.

Chapter 2 is **M** rated.

**I have hopefully written it so Chapter 2 can be skipped if you so wish. With Chapter 3, hopefully, being clear enough that you can understand what happened without having to read it in detail. So yes, the rating will be going up.**

**Most of this was written before the Third Season aired.**

**I think Ruby may have come across too mopey, but she does have a habit of self-pitying (poor choice of words I know) because of her past and, well everything else. Hopefully I didn't go too over the top with it, but I fear I may have.**

**As always constructive criticism is _greatly _appreciated.**

* * *

The Nurse on the desk had looked at her puzzled that day. Ruby had arrived at the hospital for another hesitant meeting with Belle, waiting impatiently for the confusion clear on the Nurse's face to break just long enough for her to explain that Belle was not there. Feeling a growing knot of anxiety in her chest, Ruby pressed the woman on just where her friend was. Thankfully it didn't take too much effort to get the Nurse to inform her that Belle had been discharged into the care of Gold earlier that day.

Ruby had held back her irritation, not just at not being told of the rather important event, but also because she was fully aware that Belle's memories had yet to return – and she was certain that had yet to change; surely if Gold was capable of bringing back her memories he would have done so by then. Letting her wander around could potentially be far more damaging to her than staying in the hospital ever could.

The Nurse had shrunk back then, for some reason Ruby was still unsure of, and explained just how Belle had left. Apparently she had disappeared from the hospital on her own shortly before her official discharge – to the aggravation of Gold, which Ruby admitted made her conflicting feelings of anxiety and annoyance shrink for a moment, replaced instead by a guilty satisfaction that seeped through her bones.

It disappeared just as swiftly.

The thought of an amnesiac and confused Belle running around did nothing to lower her hackles.

She left in all but a run.

Tracking her was easy enough for The Wolf. There were a few stops, places she was sure she had never known Belle to go to. Why she would be drawn there in her confused straight was baffling. Didn't people who lose their memories usually go to places that were familiar to their pre-amnesiac self? Or was that just some movie thing?

By the time she reached Belle's last location, the place where the trail disappeared beneath the heady scent of bodies and liqueur, she was long gone. Or so the bartender said. Near the end of the trail there had been another scent she more than recognised and, perhaps rather cowardly, she slunk away with new knowledge rebounding around her head, along with shame that she had been too slow.

There was no doubting the scent she had followed there, the one she was so ashamedly familiar of. Ruby knew it was her. But Belle didn't know herself.

She meaning Lacey.

_Lacey_.

Belle's memories had in fact returned, but they weren't hers. At least from the sound of it.

It was a foreign concept, something that had not fully sunk in, not until she had seen it herself only a few days prior to the moment she now found herself in.

Lacey was not Belle. She may be in her body; may sound like her, look like her, smell like her, but that was where the similarities ended.

In truth, she reminded her of when she had just been Ruby. Only-Ruby. Or rather, what people had thought of her back then. Hell, even Granny had made a comment about it while she hid away in the back of the Diner like a cowering pet.

She took a sip from the bottle in her hand, the warm liquid causing her to grimace.

Tonight was a beer night.

It was all pitiable. Leaving her overwhelmed and feeling useless. Worthless.

It harkened back to the time after she lost Peter. It was as though she had lost one of the people she cared for most all over again. Only this time their body was still walking, though empty of that person who once was.

And Ruby was doing nothing. Just hiding away, feeling sorry for herself.

She stared blankly at the brick wall opposite, her mind caught up in her thoughts of self-depreciation. The mild thrum of the music originating from the building behind barely noticeable to her.

The car park was mostly empty, not that you really required a car in such a small town. The few people that had milled around had quickly disappeared into the bar without so much as a glance, leaving her feeling like part of the decoration. Not that she wanted it any other way that night.

Her breath visibly puffed out from her lips. For a moment she almost wished for a cigarette, the rush of nicotine always helped calm her, even if the taste was unpleasant. Though she had given up that habit a while ago.

Of course at the time her ability to quit had been put down to her stubbornness, something she got from Granny. Now though she had the suspicion it had more to do with being a Werewolf, probably why she had none of the negative effects either – at least no noticeable ones.

Or, actually no. That hadn't happened had it?

Ruby shook her head, taking a quick swig of her drink, before shaking her head once more at the taste.

That had occurred in what she thought was her past. The false one.

Huffing she ran a hand through her hair, she had not been fully aware of just how messed up her head had been getting, and surely the alcohol wouldn't help. Even if she had a higher tolerance than none Werewolves.

Her hand dropped to her side, resting on the cold brick of the wall she was perched on. Her nails tapping briefly on the surface.

The music from inside swelled in volume, cutting back down with the closing of a door, the dominating sound now familiar heavy footfalls approaching her perch.

"Hey Rubes, what are you doing out here all on your own?" Emma came to a halt in front of her, shifting on her feet; a small jogging motion to stave off the chill of the evening.

"You know…" Ruby gestured with her hand, the one which still held the warm beer, as she let her sentence trail off.

"You look like a lost puppy –

Emma dropped down on the wall next to her.

" – Err, no offense intended."

Ruby could feel the weight of Emma's gaze on her face, it caused her to shift uncomfortably having grown accustomed to her self-imposed solitude. And yet, she still desperately wanted someone by her side. Perhaps it was a wolf thing.

"You should have called me. Better we drink together than alone, right?"

When no response was forthcoming, Emma sighed, turning to focus on the wall that had so easily captivated Ruby's own attention.

Ruby could hear the crinkling of Emma's leather jacket as she fidgeted besides her.

"Be pretty stupid of me to ask how you're holding up right?" The question was more rhetorical than anything else, Emma turning her own bottle in her hand as if studying the label or the contents.

Ruby, as if unable to shrug the dark cloud that rested on her shoulders, replied rather wearily, "About the same as if I asked you."

Emma gave a humourless laugh, "Right."

The blonde tilted her head back, draining the rest of her bottle.

Even if their exchange had seemed to be reluctant, or perhaps awkward, the silence between them was not. If anything it was companionable and lifted Ruby's spirits more than a little, and she was certain the same was true for Emma. She had a sixth sense like that when it came to her friend.

Ruby felt Emma moved her shoulders in a shrug, and caught the movement of her head dropping as she flickered her gaze down to the bottle both of her hands now cupped, "Not exactly healthy, drowning our sorrows."

Ruby felt the corners of her mouth twitch up, "Not alone. No."

"Well…" The blonde bumped her shoulder with her own, the motion unexpected and almost displacing Ruby from her seat, "Now we're both here…"

"…We may as well make a night of it," Ruby concluded, turning to face her friend head on for the first time that night.

"Damn straight." Emma lifted her empty bottle as if in cheer, "How about I go get us both fresh drinks, it looks like you've been nursing that for a while."

Ruby, grinning now at her friend's sudden and contagious enthusiasm, shrugged, "Far be it from me to deny a free drink."

"Hey," Emma began, her face falling in mock displeasure, "who said I was paying?"

Scratching the back of her neck, Ruby shook her head, "Got me there. I think."

Jumping back to her feet the blonde gave a small bow of her head, "Fresh drink coming up." And then she was circling around the wall and heading back inside with her heavy steps. The music from inside filtering out before being silenced with the noisy slam of the door.

Ruby found herself unable to drop her smile. Maybe moping around by herself wasn't as good an idea as she originally thought, not that she would admit that to Granny when she returned home. The woman was right enough times as it was. Really Ruby should have learnt that by now, but her stubbornness was an irritating burden at times.

Taking another sip of her beer, her face scrunched up. The sooner Emma came back with fresh drinks the better.

The sharp clicking of heels caught her attention before anything else. The sound repetitive and so like the suddenly noticeable thudding of her heart. She tried to take in a deep breath to calm herself, but it brought with it a scent that stung her nostrils.

She must have circled around the building rather than through it, but was the action purposeful or not? Was she even aware Ruby was there?

Ruby swallowed down the lump that had formed in her throat, worked her jaw to try to loosen her tongue from where it had glued to the roof of her mouth.

What had she, herself, thought would happen? Coming here when she knew this had become a regular haunt for –

"Well, long time no see."

Ruby twisted her head around, and sure enough Be – Lacey had come to a halt a few steps behind her. A hand resting on her jutted hip and a glass of some red cocktail – Cherry Margarita? – balanced delicately in her hand. It almost looked like a pose out of a magazine.

Belle's – _Lacey's_ – she cursed herself. Lacey's breathe misted before her mouth, her dress far too short for the weather. Another similarity to the Ruby of old it would seem.

Ruby felt her Wolf stir, an abundance of energy striking them both into, what she hoped to be, a panic. For a panic was a far preferable response to anything else that could possibly be circling around in her body and head.

And yet she was frozen to the spot. The panic not knocking her into motion as it rightly should.

"Cat got your tongue?" Lacey asked with a short laugh. It stopped as abruptly as it started, the shorter brunette tilting her head to the side, "Why aren't you laughing? I thought you of all people would appreciate an in-joke."

The seated woman bristled, the action finally freeing her tongue from the roof of her mouth, "What?"

That one small word came out aghast, her lungs barely releasing enough air to carry it far, and yet there was an undercurrent of the sting Lacey's words had caused.

Lacey cocked an eyebrow, amusement dancing in her eyes as she circled around the edge of the wall. Halting a few paces away from Ruby once more.

"Cat. Dog." She raised her glass, taking a small slip, savouring the taste before she continued, "Really, Wolfie?"

Ruby's eyes darkened, her jaw tightening this time as her shock was overridden.

Lacey, oblivious or pretending to be, perched on the wall besides her, crossing one leg over the other, the short hem of her dress riding up her thigh.

Ruby felt that lump reforming in her throat. Needing something to distract her, she took her time placing her bottle on her other side.

"I wanted to thank you."

Ruby's head jerked back to the other woman, the tightness of her features falling away, "What?"

This time the word was all surprise, capturing Ruby's shift in mood accurately, though she did struggle to keep her eyes on Lacey's face.

Lacey rolled her eyes, "Thank you. For visiting me in hospital."

Ruby's eyebrows rose, though she said nothing.

Lacey took this as a cue to continue.

"I still can't remember. What you said about our previous friendship." There was a hint of suspicion in the woman's words, as if she was struggling with whether to word an accusation or not. Odd considering the woman apparently had no qualms with voicing her opinions, "But thank you. It meant a lot, especially considering what the other visitors were like at the time."

"It's…" Ruby rubbed the back of her head, forcing her eyes to the brick wall again for a moment, for fear of where her gaze would go if she did not control it in her shock, "… you don't need to thank me."

"Though – besides the book, what else did you bring me?"

Ruby's brow creased at the sudden shift in tone, "What?"

That word seemed to be her favourite that night.

"I never did see that basket after," Lacey mused with a delicate tap to her chin, her eyes sparkling.

"Oh. I don't really remember." The ease with which the lie came to her was quite frightening, but the expression on Lacey's face, the tilting of her brow in a show of distrust – of hurt – that reminded her so much of Belle, pressed her to amend her statement as if the memories had only just returned to her, "I do remember bottling up some Ice Tea, and putting aside some pancakes. They were your favourite things to order…"

Ruby trailed off at Lacey's questioning stare, which contrasted sharply with the crinkling of her eyes, the smile tugging at her lips. Had she just been played?

"I don't suppose you remember…"

"I enjoyed the book."

Ruby didn't have time to be caught off-guard by the sudden interruption to their topic.

"You read it?" Her voice was weak, quiet.

"People surviving from nothing. Building a – I suppose society – out of that nothingness." Lacey spoke as if she connected to the words, and perhaps she did. Lacey had come about from the nothingness that was once Belle, the thought lanced through Ruby's chest painfully. "I found it thrilling. It shows that even in the most dire situations the Earth will provide everything, it is what sustains us and can satisfy all mans' needs."

The enthusiasm in her words, the gestures of her hands, was all Belle. And in that moment, Ruby could almost fool herself into believing that was who was perched on the wall next to her. Even if the clothes and makeup were so far removed from what she would wear. The blatant display of skin…

Ruby squeezed her eyes shut, reopening them and hoping the smaller woman had not noticed.

"It is technically a sequel. Do you happen to have the first two?"

Of course she didn't. Belle had been the one to enthuse about Jules Verne, the one who leant _her_ some of what she deemed the best of his books. Had allowed her to keep the one that had quickly become her favourite.

"You like reading?" Her question was perhaps too hopeful, and just as small as her previous words had been.

"No." Lacey laughed, not the bright, airy one she had grown so fond of, but something darker, lower, "It wasn't as if there was much else to do in hospital."

"Sounds to me like you studied it," Ruby couldn't bite back her accusation, the words perhaps forced out from her desire to believe that somehow, somewhere in Lacey her friend still resided.

That she could come back.

"I'm smarter than people give me credit for," Lacey replied nonchalantly, side glancing Ruby as she flicked her hair over her shoulder with her free hand.

"And you just asked for more of his books." Ruby's eyes narrowed, not shining with anger, but hope. As foolish as _that _was.

"Only so I can get the whole story – I don't like being kept in the dark." There was no anger in her tone, but it still struck Ruby as if they had been snarled at her.

She turned away at that, a weight settling on her shoulders, pressing her body down leaving her hunched. Belle had felt that way; she shouldn't have been surprised that Lacey did too. Maybe Belle really hadn't gone entirely.

The feeling of guilt couldn't be shaken, even as she reminded herself that she _was_ going to tell her the truth. Slowly. After Belle started to remember. Too much too soon would no doubt have hurt her, and Ruby would never let that happen. Not if she could help it.

But she never had. She never had the chance to tell her the truth because Belle hadn't started to remember.

And looking at her now…

Ruby fought back the stinging in the back of her eyes. Keeping her head bowed to hide the display from someone that would no doubt mock, rather than comfort her.

"I'll admit I'm not really into girls."

Ruby jerked, causing pain to shoot down her neck, and almost sending the bottle besides her smashing to the concrete.

"Too clingy, too many emotions," the smaller woman said, her tone all Lacey as she brushed her fingers against Ruby's knee, bared by a hole in the denim, "but I'll make an exception for you."

Ruby's eyes bugged, her throat working in a desperate attempt to bring back moisture to her dry mouth.

"Err…"

Lacey's hand travelled deliberately slowly, almost unnoticed, along her leg. Ruby could feel the warmth of her hand even through her surprisingly weather appropriate jeans, her body tensing beneath the teasing touch.

"I –

"I've seen the way you look at me." Lacey leaned in close, her lips glimmering beneath the weak lighting, her eyes dragging across Ruby's form.

Ruby swallowed thickly, her words completely failing her.

"Don't try to deny it. I know when someone wants me."

Lacey's smile, the heated look in her eyes, caused a coil of heat to form in the pit of her stomach.

How she had wanted Belle to look at her that way.

She cursed herself for those thoughts, as she had many times before.

Desperately trying to rip back some control of the situation, to regain the distance between them that had been lost so suddenly, Ruby threw out a question. The only one she could think of, "How did you know? About my… condition?"

"Oh," Lacey replied, her mouth forming an 'o' of surprise. Her hand retreating as her smile returned, "Gold told me."

"Of course he did." Ruby's voice was low, closer to a growl than anything.

"I think he thought it would keep me away. With you being so dangerous." She leaned in again, the warmth of her breath ghosting over Ruby's cold-reddened cheeks, "He of all people should know how drawn I am to 'dangerous'."

"_Everyone in this town is right to be afraid of me."_

"_Well, I'm not."_

"_You should be!"_

The shorter woman – whose voice sounded so much like the one in her head – pulled back, a great source of relief for Ruby and strangely a source of something else entirely for her Wolf, in spite of the tensing of her muscles, the hardness of her eyes.

She could not stop herself from turning her head, just in time to see Lacey pluck the cherry from her glass.

"I want to see how far those wolfish tendencies go," she said, just before plunging her teeth into the flesh of the fruit.

Ruby's mouth fell open in a silent mimic of her Wolf's howl. Her body brimming with energy she knew she could not expel, nor – in a moment – control. Her fingers dug painfully through the denim of her jeans, into the fragile skin of her thighs.

How could something so simple affect her so much?

She heard the clack of Lacey's glass as she sat it on the wall.

Lacey leant in, her lips shimmering, her mouth smelling so strongly of cherries it overrode the perfume that was so much stronger than anything Belle would have worn.

The werewolf's body tensed.

This wasn't Belle.

Even if her Wolf denied that fact.

Even if her human side had wanted this, as much as her wolf side. But not with Lacey.

Not like this.

Lacey bit her lower lip. A gesture that was so familiar…

And Ruby's control was about to snap.

"Ruby! You won't believe who I just –

_Oh thank God._

Emma's words halted abruptly as she noticed Ruby was no longer alone.

"…Oh, hi Be – Lacey. I didn't see you there, err –

"I was just leaving." Lacey moved back calmly, as if she hadn't been caught about to devour the lips of the woman opposite her. Though if Emma had even realised that was about to happen, Ruby couldn't tell.

The smaller woman stood, tugging the hem of her dress down, not that it did much good, and dusted her hands across the material.

With one last look at Ruby she sauntered away, her heels clicking rhythmically.

"Remember what I said." Lacey called over her shoulder.

Ruby dropped her gaze down to Lacey's abandoned glass. Her grip tightening on the almost empty bottle in her hand, she was unsure when she had picked it up again, "Which part?"

"Whichever appeals to you most." As she passed Emma she added, almost as an afterthought, "Evening Sheriff."

Emma stared after her scantily clad retreating form, the blonde's bafflement clear to see on her face.

It was only after the door had closed, and a long few moments passed, that Emma turned back to Ruby, her eyebrows raised high, "What the hell was that about?"

Within reaching distance now, Ruby's arm shot out, catching one of the open bottles in Emma's hands. Lifting it to her lips she downed a good portion of the liquid within.

"Hey! Easy Ruby," Emma exclaimed, her hand frozen in the motion of reclaiming the bottle, "I don't want to have to drag your ass to jail to dry out. Or face your Granny if we turn up while you're inebriated. Again."

Ruby willed her lips from the tip of the bottle, gulping in air. Her chest heaving as if she had been drowning.

Emma looked on, her brow still furrowed as she sat down next to her.

"This isn't gonna end like _Bound_ is it?" Emma inquired, her voice softening, "Except without the money – and the murder. I hope."

"Like what?"

"Jeez," Emma sighed, pressing her hand to her forehead, "My references are lost on you people."

Another moment stretched between them, Ruby struggling to heed Emma's words about going 'easy' with her drink.

The blonde shifted besides her, looking as if she was struggling with forthcoming words.

"I just – you should be careful Ruby."

Ruby settled her gaze on the woman who had quickly become a dear friend, who in another life would have been her goddaughter. Warmth bloomed in her chest at her thoughts, Emma had always liked her. Had given her a chance when she stormed out of Granny's, even accepted the real her - wolf and all – without batting an eyelid. Much as she did for another dangerous member of their community.

"I know how you felt about Belle."

"How –

"Please. You would have to be an idiot not to realise." Emma gestured widely with her hands, "And I wasn't even here for most of the time you spent together."

The warmth of Emma's hand settled on her shoulder, squeezing it as she gave her a smile.

"I never really got to meet Belle. But she seemed sweet…" Emma gave her shoulder another supportive squeeze, "… and if the Disney film is anything to go by…"

Ruby felt a bubble of laughter build in her throat, but it died just as quickly, her mood considerably soured now.

"I probably shouldn't tell you this." Emma scratched the back of her neck, taking a drag from her bottle.

The taller girl perked up slightly, ever eager for gossip, though she felt this time it would be something quite different.

"A guy was beaten up. Badly."

It did not take much for Ruby to connect the dots, "By Gold?"

Emma nodded her confirmation of Ruby's assumption.

"Wouldn't be the first time either." Emma turned to ensure there was no one else around, turning back she dropped her voice low, conspiratorially, "His tongue was ripped out."

Ruby's stomach churned. And she had eaten all sorts of things as a wolf, before she had control. _Including_, she thought sorrowfully, _people._

"Mother Superior. Err…" Emma gestured with her hand, rolling her eyes as she spoke, "…the '_Blue Fairy_' fixed it."

Ruby could not help the smile that graced her features at that. Emma had been to The Enchanted Forest, fought Ogres and all. And she struggled to come to terms with the whole town full of 'fairy-tale characters thing'.

"The hospital staff called me in. He confessed what happened to me. I asked if he wanted to press charges, after all this is my world, not the one you guys are from. But he refused. Didn't want to press charges against –" Emma raised her hands, motioning her fingers in the universal sign for quotation marks, "– 'The Dark One'."

Was Emma suggesting that –

"You think Gold will hurt me?" It _was_ a possibility. Quite a high one now she was forced to think about it. But she _was _a Werewolf. She didn't exactly have a low pain threshold, or an average endurance level.

Still, magic? That was something else entirely. Definitely not something you could easily heal from, if at all. And now magic had come to their town…

"I know you aren't exactly easy to hurt. Especially around the full moon," Emma responded, as if she had heard Ruby's thoughts, "Gold isn't who we're talking about."

Ruby's head tilted, her brow crinkling in confusion. She could see Emma's throat bob as she swallowed, her mouth opening and closing as she built herself up to finally say her next words.

"Lacey was there. She encouraged it. Then and with Whale. I'm glad that one was stopped before it got bad, being the main doctor I don't think he could have treated himself." Emma added the last part like some dark joke that she immediately felt bad about saying it, "Who knows what else has happened that wasn't witnessed or reported."

Ruby found herself speaking before she could stop herself, her answer automatic, "Belle would never –

"She isn't Belle, Ruby."

Emma had placed her bottle to the side, swinging her free arm around her friend's shoulders. Giving her a supportive one-armed hug to soothe the harshness of her words.

"I think you might have drunk too much," Ruby said, as a way to lighten the mood. To distract from their previous topic.

"It's like she's been body snatched," Emma informed as she reclaimed her bottle and dropped her arm.

Ruby's face creased in confusion.

"It's a movie and – you know you guys had twenty-eight years to watch movies and learn about pop culture and all that other stuff."

"Well, technically –

"Nope! No! I am not having one of these conversations tonight." Emma tilted her head back, her breath puffing out in visible agitation, "Or any other night if I can help it."

"So you don't want to talk about the problems with fleas. Or wet noses." Ruby finished her statements with a singled tap to her reddened and cold nose.

"Not funny Rubes." Emma shook her head, and unfortunately for Ruby noticed how she had tried to change the subject, ignore what she shouldn't, "Seriously though. About Belle – well Lacey."

Ruby's grip on her quarter-full bottle tightened, her knuckles standing out a stark white for a short moment.

"She isn't her." Emma repeated, "We don't even know if we can fix this whole memory thing."

Emma sighed again as her head dropped forward.

"Shit. I really am not the person who should be talking about this type of thing."

"About the…"

"No. I'm fine with that. Completely." The other woman held out her hands palm first, as best she could with a bottle in one hand, "I mean the whole magic and cursed personalities, the whole confusing, unbelievable lot."

Ruby's head remained bowed in mimic of her friend, her gaze flickering from the blonde to instead study the condensation rolling down the side of the bottle in her hand. Her hand long ago numb to the cold.

"Well…" She murmured, "Let's forget about it for tonight."

The taller woman raised her head, grinning brightly, the corners of her eyes crinkling as she clinked her bottle against Emma's.

"What do you say?"

Emma returned her grin with one of own as she let the topic be changed, the tenseness in her shoulders visibly disappearing, "God, I missed you Rubes."

At that, the werewolf's smile grew wider, causing Emma to laugh at the happiness dancing on her features, before silencing herself with another swig from her bottle.

Ruby waited until Emma lifted the bottle to her lips to ask her question, the one regarding Emma's words when she had returned with drinks, knowing from Emma's loud voice coloured with shock that her reaction would be priceless.

"So…" Ruby drawled, "Who _was _it you bumped into?"

Emma choked on her drink, the liquid spraying from her mouth and partially back into the bottle.

Ruby couldn't hold back her laugh.

"Oh my God, you won't believe this…"


	2. Chapter 2

**I forgot the disclaimer last chapter so:**

**Disclaimer – I own nothing related to this show or characters, I write for enjoyment and to get the annoying plot bunnies out of my head, not to make any profit.**

**This is the M rated chapter. It can be skipped if you wish. The third chapter should be up in the next few days.**

**As always, constructive criticism is _greatly _appreciated.**

* * *

Ruby carried the restaurant board in, flipped the sign on the door and collapsed onto a stool.

The night shift was worse than the early morning one, and that week she was doing both. It certainly didn't help that the full moon would arrive in the next week. It's nearing presence always put her on edge, filled her to bursting with energy she could not expel until the transformation, when she could run until her heart's content.

Yet the energy continued building up, until it was so high that it toppled and collapsed in on itself, leaving her lethargic, irritated and unable to sleep. Maybe it was a coping mechanism for her human side, or something like that. Not even Granny seemed to have answers for her when she mentioned it, she simply brushed it off as something she would have to get used to. Something natural. And so she did, for her grandmother knew more than anyone what it was like for her. Had far more years behind her than anyone, not that she would tell Granny that.

Though that night seemed worse than most. And Granny was off out for the evening, _Granny, _and she had yet to return. Who knew what she was up to? Hopefully just Bingo or something like that, something that normal grandmothers did, though she had the sneaking suspicion Granny had taken her crossbow with her.

She really didn't want to know.

She was jerked from her thoughts by the chiming of the bell over the door. She turned to the intruder, some women she didn't have the patience to name, as her face creased with an uncharacteristic show of annoyance.

Were people in this town really that stupid? Not only was it late, but the sign clearly stated that they were no longer open. And most of the lights had been switched off. How much clearer could it possibly be?

"We're closed." Her tone must have been far more aggressive than she had meant it to be, for the woman's eyes bugged as she rushed from the premises after stumbling over a quick apology.

Ruby heaved her shoulders, resting her head on a hand, her elbow propped up on the counter. She really should lock the door, but the effort needed to seemed too extreme in that moment. All she wanted was to sleep, but she knew sleep would not find her easily.

She growled out an angry sigh as the bell rung once more.

"I said we're closed." She really needed to lock that door.

The scent struck her then.

Her head snapped up, and sure enough. There she was.

"Is that how you greet all your visitors?" Lacey rested a hand on her hip, a dark bag held loosely in her other, her lips tilted up into a teasing smile she had seen on Belle's face many times before.

Ruby was on her feet before she was even aware she had moved to stand.

"Sorry." Her head dropped forward slightly, but she kept her eyes on Lacey, "But we really are closed."

"Oh I know."

The sudden sinking feeling that washed over Ruby was frightening, and yet –

"I might not like books, but I can read. You should know that."

Lacey stepped forward, her heels clicking against the tiled floor. Once more dressed in clothes that showed too much thigh and too much –

Ruby swallowed thickly, just then realising her eyes had dropped to the visible skin of Lacey's chest. Her scent seemed more powerful now, the strong perfume still assaulting her senses, though this was different to the last time they had been close. It caressed rather than stung, delicate rather than all consuming. Belle rather than Lacey.

_Don't be stupid._

Ever since this whole thing happened she had not been herself. She was as foreign to herself as Lacey was to Belle.

Rather than a blend of Ruby and Red, she seemed far more like the innocent, wide-eyed Red of old, before events had changed and morphed her. As if all her development and growth had been grasped back and buried deep, hidden beneath layer after layer.

When she forced her eyes up the shorter woman had moved even closer, only a few feet away now. Her bright eyes focused on Ruby's face, her smile devilish.

Ruby tried to respond, make some joke or remark while pushing the woman from the premises, but words failed her.

Lacey looked up at her from beneath her lashes, biting her bottom lip in such a way that rekindled in Ruby that vague hope that Belle was in there somewhere. And a familiar warmth in the pit of her stomach.

"Err…" She drew out the syllable, sounding ridiculously unintelligent.

There was no doubting Lacey's intentions, as unbelievable as they were. They had not spoken to one another after that night behind The Rabbit Hole, leading Ruby to decide Lacey's behaviour was due to the amount of liquor she had ingested – even though she had not appeared the least bit tipsy at the time. Besides, would she really risk the cushy life she had?

Emma's words came back to her then. How her friend felt Lacey was a bigger danger than even Gold. Perhaps this was all a game, play off two dangerous people against one another while she sat back and laughed. Lording over her 'power'.

Ruby needed to stop things before they got too far. Before her logical side, her better side lost the fight with the side of her who actually… wanted this.

_She's not Belle._

"Granny's left me in charge..." Ruby squeaked, and to her horror, almost exactly mimicked a teenaged boy, "I need to lock up and, uh, everything."

She gestured with her hands to nothing in particular, waving them pointlessly in the small space between them.

At the flash in Lacey's eyes, her hands dropped to her sides, realising that was probably something she should not have shared.

"Oh, really?"

_Really _shouldn't have shared.

The shorter woman stepped away to place her bag against the legs of the nearest stool, bending down needlessly and far too low.

Ruby felt sweat building on her brow, her face heating as Lacey looked over her shoulder, smirking at catching the werewolf staring.

The taller woman quickly averted her eyes, trying desperately to think of something else to deter her former friend.

What she wouldn't give for Granny to burst in and scold her for something completely meaningless right now. Maybe for slacking off or chewing the table leg again (there was a storm, she couldn't go for a run and she got bored – it wasn't _really _her fault).

"How about…" Lacey began, stepping very much into Ruby's personal space when she turned to face her. She reached up playing with the collar of the taller woman's shirt, rubbing the material between thumb and forefinger, "You lock up and then take me back there…"

She leant forward, her heels going some way to negate the difference in their height, resting both hands on Ruby's shoulders for balance.

"… to your room."

Lacey pushed her a little, as if testing how pliant she was.

And she was.

"I – I…"

Another push, and she found herself just as unable to resist. They moved backwards, Lacey controlling their movement, aiming for the door connecting to the Inn.

"I never pictured you to be one lost for words." Her voice was low, carrying a weight Ruby would rather ignore.

"I think this is a rather unique situation," Ruby managed to say as she halted their movement, at least she hoped she was the one to do so. The thought of being controlled to that extent roused conflicting emotions within her.

"Ah! There you are." Lacey beamed, her eyes sparkling, as she flicked Ruby gently on the nose, "Now, which one is your room."

Ruby found herself answering automatically, as if bewitched, "It's on the top floor, far end –

"Good. I already locked the door when I came in. I'm surprised your hearing…" The shorter woman lifted a hand, tugging lightly on Ruby's earlobe, then soothing the skin with her thumb, "…didn't pick up on it. Or maybe you did, but didn't care."

Another unintelligible sound, almost whine like, escaped the back of her throat when she realised that maybe Lacey was right.

The shorter woman stretch out a hand to their side, the lights flickering off with a sharp click.

* * *

This really shouldn't be happening.

The thought rebounded in her head, the guilt it reawakened with it settling heavily on her form

And yet, she was doing the bare minimal to stop things.

If that.

Lacey's warm body pressed to her front, face close to her own, igniting a desire to press her lips to hers. One she had not felt – or told herself she hadn't – since Belle had gone.

Hands trailed down the taller woman's arms, wrapping around her hands, threading their fingers together. Warm palms to the back of her hands, she was guided around the shorter woman's hips, her hands pressed to encourage her to hold her ass as Lacey pressed impossibly closer.

"Good girl," Lacey murmured, like she was talking to a pet, playing with Ruby's hair as she did. Pushing it behind her ear and letting her touch linger there.

Seemingly against her will, Ruby leant into the touch as Lacey trailed her thumb down her cheekbone and across her bottom lip. All the while watching her reaction closely, with a hint of amusement behind her darkening eyes.

The shorter woman rolled her hips against hers as best as she could, a gentle movement that stoked the fire in Ruby's stomach causing a low rumble to escape her throat.

Lacey released a sound much the same, though far less reserved, alerting Ruby to the fact that her hands had squeezed much of their own accord and were forcing Lacey even closer into the subtle motion of her own hips.

She froze on the spot.

Her nose twitched as Lacey leant up to her ear, her breath ghosting across the shell. The expanse of her neck before her, twisted slightly to the side, stirred her already agitated Wolf. If possible, she tensed even more, battling the urge to mark that pale, smooth skin.

The bubble of laughter by her ear did little to help.

Nor the pressure of Lacey's hands sliding up her body, pushing her shirt from her shoulders and tugging it down her arms, as the shorter woman nipped her ear. Brushed her lips along the side of her neck.

Lacey's hands cupped her breasts though the thin material of her t-shirt, her own still holding tight to her ass. Though the material was thinner now, and to her shock she realised her hands had been tracing along her thighs, had pushed her skirt up, all as if done out of her own control.

She groaned at the soft pressure of Lacey's hands, but they moved lightly, swiftly, resting on her shoulders now.

A shove.

Ruby fell, landing heavily on her back, bouncing slightly on the mattress. The size of the shorter woman was deceptive, she was much stronger than she had thought.

Or perhaps it was _she_ who was weaker. Which, considering where they had ended up, and her current inability to act the way she should, was not so hard to believe.

Not to mention the warmth at the apex of her thighs, growing with each passing moment. A testament to her weakness.

A weight struck her chest, shocking her from her thoughts.

A quick glance down revealed the bag that Lacey had been carrying. She was unsure when she had retrieved it.

"Put that on."

Ruby peered into the bag, seeing another which she immediately opened, with not a hint of hesitation.

"… What?"

"Aw, how sweet." Lacey seemed genuine in her words, which only served to baffle Ruby so much more, then she was bouncing on her feet, and with a clap of her hands informed, "I'll do it."

With quick steps the other brunette was before her, warm hand clasping Ruby's own as she pulled her to her feet.

Distracted by the feel of the hand holding her own, it took Ruby a moment to realise where Lacey's other hand was. As she did, Lacey's hand slipped from her own to join its counterpart.

Ruby's hands jerked were they hung at her sides, taking a second before they wrapped around Lacey's wrists. Halting their tugging on her belt.

She opened her mouth to speak, though words failed her and instead she could only mimic a fish out of water.

Bright smile still in place, Lacey looked up at her coyly, teeth digging into a plump lower lip.

After a moment, Lacey leant up the short distance between them, pressing a lingering kiss to the side of the taller woman's face.

Ruby's weak hold broke, her hands once again dropping uselessly to her side as her belt was unhooked and slipped from her jeans, seemingly frozen in place as she was slowly uncovered.

The other woman dropped to her knees once her task was partially complete, Ruby tried to look away, for this position allowed her gaze to see right down Lacey's top. Seemingly aware of the knowledge, but not caring, Lacey reached over to the bed to retrieve the bag and its contents.

In truth, the help was unnecessary; Ruby's fumbling more due to a deep seated panic, a heavy weight upon her frame for what was happening. And how she couldn't stop it if she tried.

And she really _should_ be trying.

And yet, despite her internal mantra, she still did nothing.

It was wrong.

She knew that logically, but this was no logical encounter.

She wanted it. Perhaps even needed it. Her mind blank to the dangers, the backlash for her actions.

As she tightened the last strap Lacey spoke, "Like I said. I'm not really into girls."

Ruby was going to make some snappy comment about how the addition wasn't exactly evidence against that, nor her previous actions, but she was already way in over her head. So very far away from 'right' she was practically drowning.

With a swimming head she looked down, trying to steady herself, but the sight of Lacey still on her knees, bottom lip between her teeth, sent her Wolf lurching within her skin. The warmth beneath the toy growing, throbbing.

Lacey somehow made standing from such a position graceful. Though her actions once she returned to her feet were not, as Ruby found herself tumbling back onto the bed.

Lacey's height dropped as she slipped her heels from her feet, followed by her skirt, before joining her.

The pleasant weight on top of her, the warmth of the other body; the sharp, sudden prick of teeth below her ear.

"Oh, you _do _growl," Lacey breathed in her ear.

The Only-Ruby side of her did not mind the turn of events, that she was being controlled; Red was terrified of losing control as she always would be, and her Wolf wanted it, but was willing to submit to her mate if she wished to be the Alpha.

_Her mate._ Ruby shook her head, tried to clear her mind. And yet, instead, she ended up bowing it, had to fight her wolf's urge to beg for forgiveness.

Another laugh, her head pushed back as a warm mouth trailed kisses and small nips along her neck, her collarbone, the underside of her chin.

A small push to the back of her head, as Lacey tilted her own, baring her neck and encouraging Ruby's participation. She eagerly complied, once more she struggled with the urge to bite as her body filled with nervous and greedy heat. Draining her common sense.

Lacey slid herself slowly across the toy, a soft gasp pulled from her throat. A sound that spiked itself right through the heat building in Ruby.

She pressed, perhaps a bit too hard, on the smaller woman's hips, urging them against her own. The sounds breathed into her neck, the heated breath against her damp skin coaxed her on, her fingers digging deeper against her better senses, her own hips pressing forward into those rocking against her.

She wrapped one arm around Lacey's waist, freeing her other to trail along her spine, then around to her front. Acting on instinct as she pressed her hand perhaps too roughly against the skin there, barely concealed by the scrap of material Lacey called a top.

Lacey's moan caused the heat within her to spike once more, tearing a sound from deep within her. The other woman's lips hovering barely an inch above her own.

Through her lust-addled mind it occurred to her they hadn't so much as brushed their lips together. It was perhaps a bit childish of her, but she had always imagined sharing a chaste, loving kiss with her friend. Perhaps when she was enthusiastically ranting about something that flew over her head. To silence the words and reveal her feelings.

This might not be what she had envisioned, but it may well be her only chance, however skewed and false as it may be.

She surged forward, only to be halted. Lacey's grip on her shoulders tight and heavy.

The shorter woman shook her head, tutting like she was scolding an overactive child.

"I'm not into all that emotional stuff," she informed, pulling at Ruby's t-shirt until it tangled around her shoulders, and she gave up, abandoning it in favour of sitting up and stripping her own top and bra, "Remember?"

Ruby managed a nod as her mouth fell open, completely beyond her control. A sound akin to a whine forcing its way from the depths of her throat, the cause a mixture of the words and the actions.

Lacey leaned forward, pressing a kiss to Ruby's nose before pulling back with a chuckle. Pushing her hair behind her shoulder, her bright eyes dancing with a hypnotising light.

"So wild," she murmured. Ruby didn't doubt the accuracy of those words, never before had her Wolf had such an influence on her behaviour – at least not that she could recall in that moment. "I could get used to this."

She punctuated her last words with another throaty chuckle as she slid her soft hands up Ruby's abdomen, cupping her still covered breasts, barely touching the hardened peaks there with her thumbs, forcing another deep, rumbling sound from Ruby's throat. Another surge of heat and wetness.

"Now that is interesting," Lacey muttered, more to herself than Ruby, as she stared intensely at her eyes. Ruby didn't need to ask what had captivated her so, not that she would have been able to if she had needed to. She was beyond speech.

Lacey remained still for a moment, as if allowing Ruby to take her all in. Her hair tumbling over her shoulders, lipstick smudged, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Her eyes even brighter than normal.

A picture of absolute beauty.

But not hers.

Belle never would have been. Lacey definitely never would.

She knew it in her head. But her heart –

What a fickle organ.

She had wanted this, but not like this. Not this scene. She had wanted gentle kisses, loving caresses. For Belle to feel for her what the werewolf had felt for her for seemingly so long.

Perhaps something like this happening later, once things were established between them. Once they had a routine, once they had embraced their emotions and let them fly free.

A child's dream really. But something Red had wanted so long ago, had continued to want; Only-Ruby had never felt that way, perhaps even laughed about it on occasion. Now, however, they were combined. One in the same. And Red's want returned to her as if it had never left, and in truth, she never wanted to lose it again.

Even if her head insisted it could never be.

The primal part of her brain taken over momentarily by her logical side, did not notice the other woman settling over the toy, lowering herself slowly, not at first.

A wince off pain crossed Lacey's face, her mind may be accustomed to such things, but Belle's body was not.

Ruby panicked, tried to reach towards the woman, finally trying to stop this. But the other woman laughed, grabbing her wrists, pressing them deep into the mattress besides Ruby's head.

"Relax…" She whispered as she leaned down. Close. So close.

Their hips met.

The always constant mantra in Ruby's head – one of two – pounded her skull, stirred up contradictions and fighting feelings. The mantra that despite her appearance, sound, scent, everything – this wasn't who her emotions were telling her.

She closed her eyes. Tried to block out her conflicting thoughts.

A mistake.

With her sight gone, now she could no longer remind herself that this wasn't who she wanted it to be. The hair and make-up heavy, more intense than Belle's. With her sight gone, her primal self accepted the scent, the sounds and the feel as fact, rather than a clouded lie. A half-truth.

All she needed to do to break that, to gain some sense back, would be to open her eyes.

Yet, she chose not to.

Another soft kiss pressed to her cheek, her nose, lessened the tenseness she had not realised had settled in her shoulders.

Gentle. She could fool herself into thinking the action was loving. Or at the least, caring.

The grip on her wrists loosened, fingers running tenderly over her skin, soothing any pain that may have been caused. Of course there was none, but the gesture bloomed a different warmth within her body. This one located firmly in her chest. One that had formed the first day she laid eyes on Belle.

Then the moment was broken. Lacey shifting above her, destroying the last dregs of thought in Ruby's mind.

The rocking of her hips, the squeeze and slide of skin against her own, the rumbling sounds that came from somewhere deep in her chest. The other woman's own little mewls of pleasure, which broke her from being completely suffocated by the scent of their joining, the scent of Belle binding with her own.

Binding.

Her eye's snapped open.

With a growl she lurched forward, rolling them over. Unable to stop herself. Taking control while also losing it all.

The sound that escaped the other woman's mouth was gleeful, as if she had eagerly awaited that very moment. Tangling her hand in the t-shirt still wrapped around Ruby's upper body. Twisting it between them, sliding up and around her neck like a leash and collar.

The woman below shifted, wrapping her legs around her hips, digging her heels sharply into her ass, forcing her deeper, harder.

Ruby's arms gave out, sending her landing roughly on her forearms, the cry of surprise lost. Her mind lost.

The coil of heat in her stomach growing, the weight and pressure of the toy between her legs helping build it, but not enough to let it loose.

Arms wrapped around her body, fingers digging into the flesh of her shoulders. Holding her closer, encouraging her wilder instincts.

She pressed her nose to the crook of the shorter woman's neck, burying her face there. Lost and wholly consumed by the sight, scent and sound of Belle. The motion of her hips increasing, more demanding, all consuming.

She could feel, rather than see, Lacey forcing her arm between their bodies. The rapid motion of her hand causing her knuckles to press hard against Ruby's pelvis, if she would a normal person she would be certain she would bruise come morning.

If anything it caused the heat within her to expand even further, encompassing her body, pressing against her skin with the need to be released. To be freed.

As Lacey cried out her pleasure, the toy between her hips shifted, the pressure finally hitting her just where she needed it.

The tight ball of heat in her stomach exploded outwards, consuming her from the tips of her toes to the top of her head.

Ruby choked out her surprised, her mouth falling open as her back arched, her head falling back like a wolf baying at the moon.

The arms encircling her pulled her down, even closer than before. Ruby pressed her head to the shoulder below her, panting. Her mind a mile behind.

When her breathing slowed to a more reasonable level, she turned her head, lifting it slightly. Lacey's eyes were closed, her lips – now free of lipstick – curled up in a pleased smile.

Ruby checked her shoulder; sure enough smears of rouge decorated the skin there, and likely her neck.

But none on her own lips.

Her Wolf nudged her forward, she tilted her head. So close to the lips of the other woman despite the refusal before.

She had been so close to kissing Belle in the library that fateful night so long ago. Had wanted to for _so_ long.

Ruby's hair must have tickled the other woman's skin, for in the next moment her eyes had snapped open. Locked with her own.

If possible, her smile appeared even more gratified as she laid a surprisingly delicate hand to Ruby's face, cupping her check, running her thumb across her cheekbone. It rested there for a moment before trailing down the side of her neck, across her collarbone to her shoulder.

A gentle, but insistent push.

Ruby conceded, rolling on to her back. The sheets were crumpled uncomfortably, but soothingly cool to her overheated skin.

Her eyes closed of their own accord, her right arm thrown over her head.

The air in the room stilled for a few precious moments. Then the mattress shifted to one side.

Ruby's eyes flickered, moving to her right just in time to see Lacey shifting to sit on the edge of the bed. Then standing in a stretch, no shame in baring her skin to Ruby's gaze. All she wanted in that moment was to press her hands to the unblemished skin, to hold her close as sleep overcame them.

Ruby couldn't look away if she tried. It didn't help when Lacey leant over to retrieve her clothes.

_Wait…_

"What…" Ruby tried to speak, but her voice was low, gravelly, her throat constricting painfully as she tried to vocalise her confusion.

"I need to get home."

Home.

By the time Ruby's mind processed that thought, the other woman was already dressed, resting one hand on her dresser as she slipped her heels back on.

A mirror sat nearby, Lacey peering at her reflection as she hastily tried to tidy up her appearance, rubbing against some leftover marks from her make-up, running her hand through her hair, fluffing it up.

"I should have brought my handbag," she tutted at her reflection, shaking her head at the best she could do.

Ruby considered letting her use some of her own cosmetics, but some bitter, possessive feeling prevented her from opening her mouth.

Let them see.

Turning on her heel, Lacey approached her, stopping by the bedside. With a tilt of her head she leant forward, leaning over until their faces were barely a hair's breadth away.

So tempting, so close.

She fought against the returning all-consuming urge to kiss her.

Lacey's eyes darted to her lips, her gaze lingering there for too long.

Perhaps Lacey was fighting the same urge.

Perhaps it was her imagination.

Perhaps it was wishful thinking.

Wishful to think _she _could be the one to bring back Belle.

_Belle_…

Oh God, what had she done?

What _had _she _done?!_

The straps around her hips tugged up, Ruby glanced down to see Lacey's hand on the still wet toy. She tugged at it once more to command Ruby's eyes to return to her own.

"Keep it as a memento…" Lacey finally moved, pressing a kiss to her forehead which felt so much like a searing taunt to Ruby's heart, "… or who knows. Maybe it will come in handy again."

This was an imposter, flaunting her friend's body. Using it and others for her own means.

Emma had warned her, in her own special way.

Hell, _she _had warned herself.

Again and again and again.

Yet here she was.

With one last smirk Lacey pulled away. Sauntering towards the door, she offered one final heated look to Ruby, which pulled uncomfortably at her stomach.

"See you around Wolfie."

And with that she was gone.

The warmth of the room suddenly disappearing, the hair on her arms and the back of her neck standing as goose pimples spread across her flesh.

She heard the dripping of the tap in her bathroom. The constant hum of the heating that did nothing to warm her.

Her lungs felt constricted, unable to take in enough air to breathe normally.

Her back stung, she realised with a groan.

She untangled herself from that accused _thing_, throwing it clear across the room where it impacted noisily with her dresser. A snarl ripping from deep within her.

The weight of what had occurred settled heavily upon her, leaving her curled in on herself. The warmth of before, that had formed within her chest having now fully evaporated; leaving a cold, empty feeling inside, one that also smothered her form. Encasing her lungs in its icy grip and enclosing her heart like a taloned claw.

* * *

She still rose for the early morning shift, thankful that she had actually gotten up on time to save her Granny barging in to drag her out of bed. Not that sleep was any easier that night.

It didn't take long to clean her room, or at least, put it back to some semblance of normality.

What did take some time was when she retrieved the 'gift' Lacey had brought. Ruby pondered over it, which was ridiculous, she should just throw it out. But something restrained her from doing so.

Growling at herself in frustration she cleaned it and chucked it in her bottom drawer, kicking the drawer shut afterwards.

It occurred to her then that her Granny, being as much a wolf as her – albeit without the change, would surely know what had happened. If not by sound, than by scent. Her complaints about running a hotel with wolf hearing far too familiar to Ruby.

With her back, and now toes, still throbbing she showered for far too long, until those feelings vanished along with any evidence of what had occurred. At least she hoped so, it was less about Granny figuring out what happened and far more to do with the constant torment having Belle's scent bound with her own would cause, a constant reminder of what she wants but will never have.

And really, it was basic hygiene; she should have showered as soon as Lacey left.

She dressed, stripped her bed for washing, and carried on about her day as if everything was perfectly normal.

And if Granny was aware of what occurred, she said nothing as she peered at her from where she was cleaning the counter. Her eyes, however, whenever they gazed upon her that day looked at her with such pity.


	3. Chapter 3

**This is the final chapter. I honestly believe this short three chapter story has helped me develop my writing, with it I have covered topics I am unsure of, things I am even uncomfortable of, and things I have never written before (though most of these topics, etc., were cut). And with that challenge I think I have learned something valuable for my future writing. As always, constructive criticism is greatly appreciated.**

**As a reminder this was mostly written before season 3 aired.**

* * *

Ruby rubbed at her sore cheek as she leant to the side in her seat, stretching so she could reach down to retrieve a tupperware box from her backpack.

Eating her lunch at the Sheriff's desk still felt so foreign.

As did her friends being gone. Again. Only this time it wasn't just Snow and Emma who had left.

They only seemed to have been back amongst them for such a short amount of time, and who knew how they would get back. Travelling between realms wasn't exactly an easy feat – without magic beans, or an extremely powerful curse that is. But she had no doubt they would find Henry and find a way back, all safe and well. Things had a way of working out in the end for them, for the most part, no matter how many hardships were thrown their way.

Until then, those left behind had to keep things running and as normal as possible in Storybrooke. Somehow.

She dropped her box on the desk, popping the lid in a swift, practiced motion. She took her time then, pausing to look around the empty Sheriff's station before placing the lid down.

Apparently the small amount of time she had spent answering phones, and finding people or things (like that heart!) when she was cursed, more than qualified her to temporarily take over Emma's role. She was sure there were bound to be other people more qualified than her, but she was still honoured to be honest. That she was trusted that much, in spite of everything, trusted enough for her to fill in the Saviour's role for a small while.

Still, that knowledge did little to take away her doubts about it.

Her eyes dropped to her lunchbox, her stomach rumbled as she poked at the chicken salad sandwich with a delicate finger. Her movements subdued despite her hunger.

Her appetite hadn't been right for a while now. Even the usual hunger that came after Wolf's Time was different, reduced, held back. It left her feeling nauseous and more than a little feeble.

Still, she knew she had to eat in spite of that, and so she picked up the sandwich and took a tentative bite.

She was well aware that The Blue Fairy had managed to make a memory potion. That it had been able to bring back Sneezy's memories. Leroy mentioned that Blue had made another vial of it, it didn't exactly take a genius to figure out who it was intended for.

Perhaps the apparent impending doom for them all should have forced her into some sort of action. But Belle wasn't alone, and being back to herself surely she would rather her last moments be spent with Gold (her Wolf snarled at that thought) than her supposed _friend_ who had taken advantage of her. Who she could no longer rightly say she knew, nor trusted.

And once the dust settled, when things were fairly stable – even with most of the key figures in the town off to another realm – Ruby still could not bring herself to see the friend she had missed so completely. The one she had fought to bring back as best she could, with her frequent visits to the hospital. Forcing herself to endure the pain of seeing Belle so agitated and hysterical, something that eventually became overwhelming, but she soldiered on, determined to help. And then suddenly Lacey had appeared.

And things fell apart.

When Belle had come to the diner on occasion – more so in those first few days after the ship left – Ruby had ducked into the back, dropping whatever she was in the process of doing. To her surprise Granny did not yell or scold – though she had rolled her eyes in annoyance – but rather covered for her.

It was pathetic; wholly and completely.

And yet, she continued the very behaviour she was ashamed of.

It was a vicious cycle. What she had done was shameful, and what she was currently doing was just as disgraceful. The shame circled around, fed by each side; the longer that went without her approaching Belle, the worse her actions in the past seemed, the worse her current actions seemed.

With half her sandwich down she caught the sound of the station's door opening, accompanied by a flowery scent that had long ago vanished from her life.

What was that phrase? Speak of the Devil –

Ruby shook her head, scolding herself as soon as the words entered her mind. An apt description for Lacey perhaps, but not Belle. Never Belle.

With nowhere to hide now, and more than a little surprised this had not happened yet, Ruby could only sit there as Belle came in to view. Her head lowered almost unnoticeably.

_She_ should have made the first move.

The werewolf's nails bit into the surface of the table as she struggled to hold herself still. Her right knee bouncing beneath the only object now separating her from someone she had tried so hard to avoid, and yet, wanted the exact opposite to occur. Despite her inability to act.

"Hi…" The far more conservative blue dress Belle wore, the way she folded her hands neatly in front of her, were all familiar signs, ones that helped sooth some of Ruby's bubbling anxiety. Her knee slowing its movement, but still jerking every so and then.

Ruby tilted her head, a hesitant smile finding its way to her face, regardless of the fact it had no right to be there. It seemed beyond her control, "…Hey."

Had there ever been a more awkward exchange? Between them at least?

"Err…" Ruby got to her feet, she was on the clock, she needed to remember her manners, "Why are you – is there a particular reason you're here? Has something happened?"

She grabbed a chair from the other side of the room, twisting it and placing in front of Emma's desk with ease.

Belle's eyes widened at the gesture, her brow twitching for a moment before it smoothed with her smile. She gave her thanks, and Ruby waited until she was seated before taking her place once more.

"Well, as the Acting Mayor it is part of my responsibility to keep a close relationship with the Acting Sheriff." Her shoulders shifted as she fiddled with her hands, "I suppose I best pencil in a Four o'clock appointment for a session of pointed glaring."

Ruby cocked an eyebrow at that, her wide-eyed expression of shock giving way to a quirked smile, "Was that supposed to be a joke?"

Belle gave a short chuckle, "I guess there's still a bit of Lacey in me."

"No. She was better at them." Ruby's smile fell as she spoke, she shook her head violently, correcting herself physically and mentally, "No. There isn't."

Needing to distract herself, though in truth she was acting more on instinct, Ruby lifted one of her hands to slide the tupperware container across the desk between them.

She was clueless as to why, but when it came to the ones she cared for. The ones she was determined to protect, partly her own feelings and partly The Wolf's, she needed to see that she was tending for them. That they were looking after themselves. And the best way to do that was making sure they ate.

_Oh God_… she thought horrified, _I'm turning into Granny._

Belle took the container, fighting a grin as she pulled it the rest of the way towards her and took a small bite out of the remaining half of Ruby's lunch.

With that, the last of her obvious display of nerves shrunk back for the moment.

"There isn't really much happening that requires your attention." Ruby folded her arms, leaning forward slightly, using her limbs for leverage against the desk, "Not in this department that is. The most exciting thing to happen lately was when I had to rescue Marco's cat, Figaro I think, out of a tree. I thought the fire service did that short of thing. Guess not."

She tilted her head, displaying the red lines on her cheek.

"Cats don't really like me," Ruby said with a grin and a quick shrug, "Who would have thought?"

Belle's expression hardened as she carefully returned the sandwich to its container, "You need to stop putting yourself down."

Ruby's brow creased as she straightened in her seat, her back rigid, "What?"

The shorter woman pressed two fingers to either side of her temple, her eyes squeezing shut momentarily.

An internal struggle was taking place before her, in a person she never wanted to see affected by such stress. Ruby's hands fisted in her lap as she tried to hold herself still. Her previous negative thoughts shooting back to the forefront of her mind. What right did she have to comfort after…

Ruby waited, impatient beneath the surface, as Belle took a deep breath. Her eyes opened, but avoided Ruby's gaze. A small gesture, but one that struck her painfully.

"I'm sorry."

Ruby's brow crinkled, luckily Belle continued before she could question what she meant. Before she jumped to an assumption she would rather not even faintly acknowledge.

"It's strenuous. Everything."

Ah. Now she understood, or at least she thought she did.

"It is… difficult." Ruby's shoulders slumped, the werewolf sighing heavily as she closed her eyes. The show of melancholy melted away quickly, giving way to raised brows and a self-deprecating grin, "Kind of an understatement right?"

No. She _did_ have the right to comfort, to try to mend what she had done.

Belle did not return the expression, though her lips did quirk slightly, though whether with mild amusement or sorrow, Ruby could not tell.

So she tried to help her the best she could, however bizarre it was for _her_ to be the one to try to help in a situation like this.

"It took me a long-time to come to terms with it all. Sometimes it still comes back and smashes together." She ran a hand through her hair, her own gaze wavering as Belle looked back to her, "For a while my real memories and the false ones clashed. Well, it was less the memories than the emotions connected to them."

Ruby ducked her head, willing herself be strong in her words, it was always a struggle to speak of such things. To even acknowledge such things to herself, let alone others. It was so much easier to push it away, to the back of her mind. It was the past and it was best of if it stayed that way. It was part of the reason she still favoured her cursed name, in Ruby she had a second chance. The curse may have been terrible for most, and it had its fair shares of horror for Ruby, but overall it had been an improvement – in a way – for Red. No longer struggling against her Wolf, no longer weighed down by the terrible things that she was solely responsible for.

It gave her a second chance.

And, in spite of how she tried not to think of those bad things, to talk of them, with Belle she felt she could. She could be strong for her; she could share such things with her. In this she could help her.

"Sometimes I would find myself thinking back, I would feel such sorrow for my parents. But I couldn't make out whether the sadness was Ruby's or Red's. Whether it was Ruby mourning her parents lost in a car crash or Red…"

As her sentence trailed off, Belle's face furrowed in that familiar adorable manner Ruby was accustomed to.

"Would it help to share?" A warmth settled over Ruby at those words. The eagerness with which Belle chased after knowledge, the way she always shared things she knew or asked about Ruby's own likes or dislikes. The enthusiasm she took to learning new things, trying or experiencing those things. The youthfulness of it all was infectious, and in truth it meant a lot to her, knowing that there was someone out there who was generally interested in her. Interested in the things she knew or the things she wanted to share. And not the least bit afraid.

She may have been cleared of poor Billy's murder, but she could still sense the air of fear many people had towards her, buried beneath the surface. Whether it was intentional on their parts, or some subconscious reaction to a 'predator', she figured she would never truly know.

Belle had never had that fear, had even been prepared to stay with her on that fateful night of her attempted _redemption _at the hands of a mob. She had not flinched or stepped back as she had closed the space between them, placing Belle in the chains meant for her. There had been no fear in those blue eyes, only sorrow and upset, not her own, but for Ruby.

She was selfless. Willing to sacrifice herself for others, and yet no one seemed prepared to offer her control of her own life, even here in this 'new' world.

Belle – like a select few others – treated Ruby like a person. Perhaps she was not fully aware of the risks as the others were, perhaps due to never experiencing it, but like them it meant nothing to her. And even if she had sort out knowledge on her condition, it had no weighing on Belle's view of her. Those special few did not see Ruby as a threat or a danger or a pet. Or… or even a _toy_.

Ruby played with her hair, tugging a few strands as she pushed them from her face, "It's a long story."

"I like stories," Belle replied with no hint of hesitation, her eyes dancing with a familiar light, one which was always hungry for knowledge.

"I know that." How could she not, it was part of what she found so appealing about her, "I will tell you… just not now, if that's okay…?"

Belle shook her head, smiling sweetly up at her, "Of course Ruby."

The woman, still shorter than Ruby even when seated, reached out with her hand. It hesitated for a second over the surface of the desk, before Belle came to her decision and settled it softly over Ruby's own.

The werewolf tried not to flinch, not out of timidity, but due to the repulsion she felt towards herself. Repulsion for the feelings the warm weight of the hand ignited within her.

She had no right to feel that way. Not after what she had done.

Mere moments ago she had pondered on the fact no one seemed willing to give Belle control over her life, she should have included herself in that.

"Sometimes I think it was easier when I only had to deal with the time I spent…um, kept…"

Ruby wanted to ask more, to pry, but that would not be fair on the other woman. And so, like Belle had done before, she chose not to press the matter. If Belle ever wanted to share such things with her again – which she doubted – then she would in her own time.

Belle's gaze dropped to their joined hands, her teeth poking out as she bit her lip. Her expression, now, seemed free of any emotion, something that rose Ruby's hackles, set her and her Wolf on edge.

The hand atop hers trembled, and all she wanted to do was turn her own and thread their fingers together. When she looked up, Belle's bright gaze locked with her own. Her eyes held a sea of emotions that Ruby couldn't even begin to pin down, and beneath them all, there was something that caused her breath to falter, caught the air in her lungs and stole it away.

"I remember."

This time Ruby did try to pull away, but Belle's grip on her hand tightened, forcing her to stay – tense as she was. Forcing her to endure the icy wash of emotion that encompassed her frame, which threatened to enclose her heart, freeze it mid-beat, solidify the very life force running through her veins. Something she had fought many a night when left alone to her thoughts.

She let Belle hold her in place, though her arm was still struggling to pull itself back. The tension there tight and near painful as her muscles shook.

"I don't –

"Ruby." Belle's voice was soft, almost a whisper as her thumb swept over the back of her hand, soothing her frayed nerves if only a little.

The tenseness of Ruby's muscles faded only slightly, her small attempt to detangle herself completely halting.

"I think… it was her way of thanking you. I don't believe she knew any other way to do so."

"I hope she didn't thank everyone that way." Ruby tried, attempting to lighten the mood and the weight pulling her muscles taut. But the words were heavy, frigid, out of place and ill-fitting.

"No." Belle stressed the word, her eyes shining but determined. "Only those she was drawn too… It's how she apologised too."

All Ruby wanted to do was run, go hide and cower away in some forgotten corner until Belle forgot what happened. Until _she_ forgot what had happened. So they could start fresh and anew.

Instead, she reluctantly forced herself to continue the conversation, because that is what people do. What she should have done as soon as Belle returned.

"Apologised? To who…" The realisation came to her before she could finish her question, and while she liked to be in the know of things, _that _was something she would easily pass up. Something she would easily choose to ignore and remain oblivious to. It was easier that way.

"I truly believe she appreciated what you did for her." Belle pulled away with a sigh, turning her gaze to the ceiling and then the far wall, "You were the first one to be genuinely kind to her, perhaps the only one at the time."

There was a familiarity about those words, and she quickly placed them to something Lacey had said during their first meeting. Though, unlike Belle, Lacey had said she was the _only one_ to be nice to her. There was no qualifier, no 'perhaps' or 'maybes'.

And that small fact niggled at her.

"What about –

"He visited, but I don't remember. I think it had to do with the sedatives they kept giving me."

The answer flew out too quick, the words rushed. It was clear there was something Belle was holding back, if not for her verbal reaction than her physical one. Her eyes still fixed on the far wall as she fidgeted with her hands. And surely if the sedatives affected her that way, she would not remember Ruby's visits clearly either.

Ruby's eyes narrowed, in thought not anger. She wanted to know what Belle was hiding, because if _he _did something… well her Wolf was a protective creature. _She_ was a protective person.

Though what chance would she stand in a confrontation with him? And really, out of the two of them, who was likely to have caused the most pain? Surely not Belle's… True Love?

And so, as before, she let the topic lie. If Belle wanted to share, then she would, in the future. She still doubted that would ever happen, but Belle's words...

It was almost as if she knew of Ruby's guilt, was fully aware of it and was attempting to sooth it with her words. And that made her heart heavy, though she could not understand why.

"Or, perhaps, I am simply making excuses for her. Because shewas _me_. Or I was her." Belle returned her gaze to Ruby's own, but it fell short, resting on the telephone on the desk instead. She took a breath, it wavering subtly enough that she only noticed due to her enhanced hearing, "She – she did, and encouraged, such terrible things."

The words, just like that breath, were barely audible. They fell out with difficulty, as if Belle had to pull them from some invisible grasp deep within herself.

Ruby tilted her head, tried to get Belle to meet her gaze, for she heard the weight of guilt in those words, and that was wrong. So very wrong, "Belle. You don't have to talk about –

"No!" Belle's gaze snapped up to her own, as hard as her word had been, "… Sorry."

The shorter woman tried to look away – but like before, when Ruby tried to pull away and Belle had not let her – Ruby would not let Belle pull her gaze away. Not this time.

"Belle…"

"I need to," Belle tried to explain, gesturing with her hands in a sharp, sudden movement, "I need to share this. To talk about it. You – I trust you with it."

Ruby's natural response was to convince Belle that her actions were foolish, that such matters were better suited for Archie to deal with. But she could not deny her. Could never deny her. And she wanted to fix things. So she remained silent, hoping her expression showed just how honoured she was that Belle chose her for this. And hoping it hid her fear just as well.

Perhaps she could lift Belle's guilt from her shoulders, add it to her own burden for that would surely make no difference to her. Free her friend as best as she could.

"She was self-absorbed, avaricious. Wanted money, things."

Ruby spared a short moment to be thankful for all the time she spent in the still unopened library, and listening to Belle and her long words. It had turned her into a bit of a nerd, the very idea something Only-Ruby would have laughed at.

"She wanted power – control. She even asked for immortality, not to spend the rest of her days with the one I love. But to take advantage of it, to stay forever young and –

Belle paused to press a hand to her cheek, biting her little finger.

"And all I wanted was a quiet life, my books… and the ability to make my own choices."

Belle dropped her hand from her face, pressing it tightly into her other hand. Ruby could see and hear Belle swallow, as if there was something solid lodged in her throat, she wanted to sooth the pain, but forced herself to remain still.

"And there was this man. Some – some things happened and it lead to… to –

"I know Belle." Ruby was the one to lean forward this time, the story Emma had shared coming back to her, lurching her form into movement. She rested a hand on Belle's tightly clasped ones, feeling them strain as they tried to not shake, "You don't need to. You weren't yourself then. You aren't her."

Her other hand joined its companion, enclosing Belle's trembling hands with warmth.

"You are you. You are Belle, you are a courageous, wonderful person, and by far the most accepting and kind person I have ever met."

"That's not true."

"It _is_ true." Ruby tried to infuse her words with her feelings, the truth of them, tried to make Belle accept them as Ruby had once accepted Belle's words to her, "You once said there was good in me, that others could see it but I couldn't. I was blind at that moment, as you seem to be now."

The scrape of Belle's chair caused Ruby to wince, partly due to the sound, and partly due to the distance the other woman was trying to put between them, even if it was rightly deserved.

"For her to be the way she was, I have to be capable of doing those things." Belle's voice was quiet, but the words were hard, her eyes shining, Ruby wanted to wrap her arms around her, to comfort her as she had at Archie's 'funeral'. To see Belle that way was wrong – reminded her off her hysterical behaviour in hospital – Belle did not deserve to think or feel such things, "Surely I must have that in me somewhere. Somewhere deep down I _must _have it in me, I must be like that. And I just can't see it."

"No, Belle –

"She treated you like a dog Ruby!" Belle's voice was sharp, suddenly loud, she lifted her hands, palm outward, almost throwing Ruby back to their first meeting back in the hospital after the 'accident'. The shorter woman's voice rose in pitch as she spoke, her brow twisted in anger and eyes now clearly watering. "How can you be unaffected by that? Whether there were 'good' intentions or not, that gave her no right to use you like a – a pet or a toy. Something to amuse herself with."

That wasn't untrue. Despite her guilt, the heavy weight pressing down on her so difficult to ignore. Despite even her promises to herself and her determination. Lacey would snap her fingers, and like a wounded dog desperate for love from its abusive master, she would go to her running. Regardless of the warnings; of the danger she was willingly going into. One person who would use her, the other – if they were ever to find out – doing God knows what to her.

There was a pressure around her heart, squeezing the fragile organ to the point of bursting. She gasped for breath. Of all those things Lacey had been a part of, it was what she – herself – chose to do that affected Belle the most. She took advantage. She was the one to hurt Belle.

Again.

Just like when she had chained her in the library, in spite of her knowledge of Belle's imprisonments. The lasting impact they left on her. She had still done it.

In the end she was just as terrible as those others. Perhaps even worse.

And, despite it all, Belle was blaming _herself_.

In that moment she almost wished someone would take her heart, free her from her emotions. Give it to Belle and let her do to it as she wished.

But she already had it, didn't she, not physically, but in every other way.

Belle should not blame herself for the actions of others. She should _never _have to do that.

"I'm stronger than Lacey. Stronger than you." In an effort to stop herself from getting to her feet, from going to Belle's side and wrapping her in her arms, Ruby gripped the table. The hard edge cutting into her palms, "I am a werewolf."

"Maybe it wasn't physical strength you needed," Belle shot back, her words sharp but tone soft, caring.

"If I didn't want it to happen, than it wouldn't have." She tried, once more, to put all her feeling into the words, make Belle she the truth of them, make her understand it was not her fault. Belle deserved to be free of the weight of such guilt.

"You weren't coerced."

Ruby took a deep breath, steadying her suddenly shaking nerves and bouncing knee. She had to be honest, and with Belle that was surprisingly easy to do so. She had kept her feelings for Belle close to her chest, not even sharing her secret with Snow – though to be truthful, her friend was never that good at keeping any.

And Belle remembered, everything. To tell her the truth could surely do no more damage than what had already occurred between them. To them.

And she _did _want to free Belle of that guilt. Take it and add it to her own, anything to just free Belle of it.

"I wanted it." This time it was she who was biting her lip, something she could not recall ever doing before, "Just not with her."

"Than who?" Belle's nose scrunched up briefly, her look questioning, then her eyes widened, "Oh…"

Belle trailed off, having a moment, much as Ruby had, where realisation sunk in.

"I'm sorry," Ruby lurched forward, hands now on the top of the desk, unthinking of how aggressive the action could appear, "I'm so sorry. You had no choice and I – I was just as bad as all those others who took away your ability to choose. And I –

She pushed herself back in her seat, lowering her head, loosely wrapping her arms around herself. Even now she was pitying herself, and that was wrong. Disgusting.

It should be Belle who was being comforted, not her and –

Her internal rant at herself was cut short as, from the corner of her eyes, she could see Belle shift, but she couldn't tell what expression was on her face.

The chair scraped against the floor again. Belle's visual presence disappearing, her footsteps near silent as she came to stop by Ruby's side, the warmth of her hand hovering over her shoulder before the weight settled there.

"No Ruby. If anyone wasn't given a choice, it was you."

Even in her confusion she stood to her feet, some primal part of her hating being looked down upon, needing to even or reverse the playing field. She worked her dry throat as her mind worked over Belle's words.

"What?"

Seeming more confident now, Belle lifted her other hand to rest on her opposite shoulder. Ruby could feel the shake of her hands, could see the nervous twist to her features, as Belle forced herself to answer her, "She wouldn't have taken no for an answer. I know because…"

Through the nervousness, Belle's face shifted, her eyes widening and lip trembling. The heavy scent of _fear_ of all things surrounding her.

But it was different to the many times Ruby had smelt it in the past. This wasn't directed at her, not really. This was due to something else entirely, and she wouldn't let it continue.

"You don't have to explain."

The fear shrunk back, as if curling in on itself, as Belle's lips parted as if to speak –

The shrill call of the phone interrupted her.

Belle's hands slid from her.

Ruby glared at it. As if her gaze could be seen by the caller and frighten them into hanging up.

Just when things seemed to be getting somewhere better. Just when she had made a step towards healing the damage she had caused. Or… had she caused any? Was Belle revealing that…? But no. That couldn't be right, could it? Belle had even said minutes before that she loved… but, could she…?

For a moment, while Lacey had been around, she had the childish thought she could bring Belle back with a kiss. Surely Gold would have tried that, and if it hadn't worked…

She shook her head, no that was a childish hope. Wasn't it?

Her gaze shifted to the clock on the wall to distract herself from her thoughts.

Her stomach dropped. Great, she only had five minutes of her lunch break left.

"Growling won't make it stop."

Ruby felt a flood of heat overwhelm her face, which caused a bright bubble of laughter to erupt from Belle.

It seemed her more wolfish instincts were getting a bit more prominent nowadays, for better or worse.

The phone fell silent just as they now had.

Ruby shifted on the balls of her feet, her shoes squeaking against the hard floor. So much had passed in what felt like such a short amount of time, and yet they had barely broached the matters between them. The very heart of things.

It seemed they were both blaming themselves. And while Ruby thought Belle had no right doing so, perhaps there was something to be seen by thinking Belle's way. If she thought Belle was being foolish blaming herself, than perhaps she was thinking too heavily also, blaming herself too much. Perhaps with each other they could shred the feelings, get to the heart of the matter.

Heal each other.

They had come close, yes, but not _there_. Not yet.

She played idly with the cuff of her shirt, needing to keep herself occupied and to prevent herself from pressing an issue that may well be best left alone for the moment. She needed to stew on it for just that little bit longer.

Her face cooled quickly, though her embarrassment had yet to fully evaporate.

There was still a lot in the air between them, and when Ruby's eyes finally rested back to Belle, she met a gaze that appeared to have been surveying her face closely.

The shorter woman jumped, her gaze dropping shyly. As if embarrassed to have been caught staring.

"Maybe," Belle bit her lip in that manner that caused Ruby's neck to heat up once more, "we can… meet later? To… have a chat."

Perhaps that would be long enough to short out some of the thoughts in her head. And… well, Belle had not only willing sort her out (multiple times) but now wished to spend more time with her. Why did that simple thought affect her so?

Ruby felt a slow grin spread across her face, despite the re-emergence of panic and hope those words caused, "A girl's night."

"Yeah." Belle grinned, resting both hands on Ruby's shoulders in a way that caused a severe case of déjà vu, "Girl's night."

If possible, Ruby's smile stretched further, pulling her cheeks painfully tight in her sudden overwhelming joy.

Belle raised a hand, cupping Ruby's cheek, her thumb running gently over the thin red lines on her cheek.

With only a slight hesitation, a moment when the scent of fear unfurled briefly, almost reflexively, Belle stretched up. The distance between them shrinking, until Belle pressed her lips lightly against Ruby's cheek. Though Ruby's startled twitch caused it to land somewhat off-target.

It was supposed to be a gesture of friendship, but that chaste kiss to the corner of her mouth struck her with a powerful emotion she had never experienced before. As if something powerful was flooding through her very veins, awakening in her chest.

Her breath caught in her throat, the points of contact between them tingling, like small sparks dancing across their skin.

When space reopened between them, Belle wore an expression of stunned timidity; an expression Ruby knew was mirrored on her own face.

The shrill call of the phone pierced their ears once more.

"I should probably…"

"Yes." The shorter woman stepped back, her cheeks red much like Ruby was sure her own were, "Get to work Sheriff, I wouldn't like having to replace you."

"Right you are Madame Mayor." She hovered her hand over the receiver, "See you later."

Her words held a tinge of hope, perhaps even fear that Belle had changed her mind, but the other woman's smile calmed her nerves swiftly.

"See you at the Diner around dinner time?"

For where else would be they meet?

Ruby nodded, a smile firmly in place as Belle bid her final goodbye. Ruby was unable to look away as Belle walked towards the door, unable to return her gaze to the phone until she could no longer hear the tapping of her shoes.

Pushing back the latest event to occur to mull over later – and wishing she had Emma to talk to about it, even if she was clueless about such things; especially if it was what Ruby feared, and secretly hoped it was – she lifted the phone to her ear.

"Good afternoon, Sheriff's Station."

**End**


End file.
